Prep baseball: Falcons down Eagles

May 4, 2013

BELPRE - Host Belpre didn't take advantage of early scoring opportunities, but Wahama did, and then defensive lapses did in the Golden Eagles in the later innings as the White Falcons notched a 9-0 TVC Hocking Division baseball victory Friday evening at Civitan Park.

Wahama improved to 14-11 on the seson while Belpre fell to 2-18 and will entertain South Gallia, another TVC Hocking foe, at 5 p.m. Monday.

The Golden Eagles couldn't produce any runs in the first three innings, despite having the bases loaded with two outs twice as well as two runners aboard with one out in the second.

"We just couldn't get the big two-out base hit when we needed it, but we haven't all year," said Belpre head coach Terry Mullen. "And other teams that we've played against have."

In the Wahama first, Wyatt Zuspan delivered a sacrifice fly to center field and a second run scored on a wild pitch.

White Falcon No. 9 hitter Austin Cole, who went 3-for-3 with a double and three RBIs in the game, singled up the middle with two outs in the second for a 3-0 lead.

But Belpre lefthanded hurler Mike Simoniette staved off any further damage in the frame by then picking Cole off first base.

Meanwhile, the Golden Eagles used singles by Ryan Epperly and Tavian Miller and a walk to Kole Counts to fill the sacks in the first, and singles by Epperly again and Simoniette, who bunted for a base hit, and a walk to Dakota McDaniel to load 'em up in the third. But a strikeout and fly-ball out to left respectively ended those golden scoring chances.

McDaniel doubled and Alex Perry walked in the second, but a pop-up and fly-ball out to center halted that threat too.

But the final four frames belonged to Wahama. Pitcher Dakota Sisk retired the last Belpre 13 batters he faced and the White Falcon hitters, held to only three singles by Simoniette over the first four innings, banged out seven more plua a double in the last three while plating six runs.

Sisk singled in a run in the fifth, two runs crossed the plate as a result of three Belpre errors in the sixth, and Hunter Bradley's RBI single and Cole's two-run double in the seventh completed the game's scoring.

"Mike Simoniette pitched a heck of a game for us," said Mullen of his southpaw's complete game with six Ks and three walks. "But he would have had to pitch a perfect game tonight for us, and it would still have been 0-0 at the end of seven."